Negotiating Caste and Class: Subaltern Voices in Bama's Short Stories

Abstract

This paper examines the representation of subaltern voices in Bama's short stories through the interconnected lenses of caste and class. Drawing upon Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak's concept of the subaltern and the framework of Subaltern Studies, the paper analyses “The Grazing Fields”, “This Man”, “The Yellow Butterfly”, and “Worldly Wisdom”. These stories foreground the experiences of individuals who occupy marginalized positions within society and expose the social, cultural, and economic structures that perpetuate exclusion. Bama's narratives move beyond portraying victimhood by emphasizing resilience, agency, and resistance among oppressed communities. Through ordinary characters such as Kirukkan, Kaanchaarathan, Raju, and the school children of The Yellow Butterfly, Bama reveals how caste discrimination, poverty, hypocrisy, and social prejudice shape everyday life. At the same time, she demonstrates the ability of marginalized individuals to challenge dominant ideologies through wisdom, truth, compassion, and alternative ways of seeing the world. The paper argues that Bama's short stories function as powerful sites of subaltern expression that question hegemonic social structures and affirm the dignity of marginalized lives.